Section: Kennedy Meadows to Tuolumne Meadows

SYSTEM	GEAR	CARRIED	WORN
BACKPACK SYSTEM
Pack	ULA Circuit	40
Pack Liner	Trash Compactor Bag	2.18
SHELTER SYSTEM
Shelter	BA Fly Creek 2 (Shared Weight)	18
Ground Cloth	Gossamer Gear Polycryo	1.3
SLEEP SYSTEM
Insulation Top	Enlightened Enigma 20 Quilt	22.85
Insulation Bottom	Thermarest NeoAir Xlite (long)	15.92
CLOTHING SYSTEM
Socks #2	REI Lite Hiker Socks	2.07
Underwear	Patagonia Underwear		4.7
Hiking Shorts	NYU Shorts		11
Hiking Shirt	Marmot LS Shirt		7
Insulation Top	Arc’Teryx Cerium LT Hoody	13.85
Wind Shell Bottom	Montbell Dynamo Wind Pants	3.26
Wind Shell Top	Montbell Tachyon Anorak	2.82
Rain Shell Top	Marmot Super Mica Rain Jacket	9.95
Insulating Hat	Outdoor Designs Hat	0.74
Gloves	Mountain Hardware Orko Gloves	1.82
Bandana	Bandana		1.29
Buff	Buff		1.5
Sun Hat	NOLs Hat		2.82
FOOTWEAR
Shoes	New Balance Trail Runners		23.52
Socks 1	Darn Tough Socks		2.09
COOKING SYSTEM
Stove	Snow Peak Giga Power Stove	3.71
Cook Pot	Imusa Pot with DIY Lid	4.07
Utensil	Sea to Summit Long Spoon	0.51
Towel	Glamoflauge	0.55
HYDRATION SYSTEM
Water Filter	Sawyer Mini	1.62
Water Scoop	DIY Scoop/Adapter	0.59
Water storage	2L bladder	1.29
Water Bottle	smart water bottle	1.29
Water Bottle	smart water bottle	1.3
SURVIVAL
Light	Petzl Tikka Head Lamp	3.19
Fire Starter	Mini Bic Lighter	0.4
First Aid	First aid kit (trimmed down	1.04
Toothbrush	Portable Toothbrush w/ toothpaste	1.05
Toilet Paper	Small Roll of TP	2.23
Repair Kit	repair kit	1.28
Cash/Credit Card	cash/Credit/atm Card/ID	0.4
Bear Can	Bear Vault 500	40.16
ELECTRONICS
Phone/music	Galaxy s4	6.27
Charger	Charger	1.5
ITEMS CARRIED
Trek poles	Black Diamond Trek Poles		20.22
	Base Weight (Oz)	207.24	74.14

 

Conditions Faced: 

2014 was a low snow year. It barely rained, and was mostly sunny everyday. Although temperatures reached the 30’s, I was never cold sharing a tent with my girlfriend, Legs. It rained once. Temperatures were generally lower than what was faced in the desert. Sitting in the shade could be chilly. Snow was never really a factor, except for some post holing on the northern sides of a few passes. The biggest change was the possibility for dangerous conditions. We faced none. 

After Hike Notes:

Backpack System

• The ULA Circuit was not wide enough to let the BearVault 500 lay horizontally when packed.
• The trash compactor bag made it the entire way, unscathed, and used daily to keep my gear dry. I still haven’t hiked in the rain.

Shelter System

• My girlfriend was not keen on sleeping under a tarp, so she brought the Big Agnes Fly Creek UL2 for us to use. At 6′ 6”, I am too tall for this tent and my head and feet were pushing up against the body of the tent. The tent itself is well made, and very light for a stand alone tent. Sharing it will another person meant ZERO cold nights, even above the tree line. In the one rain storm, the tent kept us dry. The biggest advantage of the enclosed tent was protection from mosquitos, as they were virtually unbearable in some spots.
• I split the weight of the tent between Legs and I.
• I was still carrying the Gossamer Gear Polycryo, but rarely using it under the tent.

Sleep System

• The Enlightened Equipment Enigma 20 degree Quilt performed perfectly in this section. I rarely slept in my puffy jacket, and many nights I slept in just my shorts. Temperatures reached the low 30s in this section.  That being said, I was never cold, though I shared a tent with someone.
• The Thermarest NeoAir Xlite is the best sleeping pad money can buy. Worth it. Always.

Clothing System

• I carried two pairs of socks, but would carry three if I did it again. A pair of sleep socks would have been nice, with two other pairs rotating for hiking.
• One pair of boxers was enough for me. The Patagonia Boxers were very comfortable and durable.
• My NYU shorts had survived four years of sporadic use so they did not have any problems. I could only hike in shorts in this section due to the heat. I wore the Montbell Dynamo pants often, usually when taking breaks.
• The Marmot Shirt was a button down. Most hikers used button down, travel style shirts. I definitely needed the sun protection of a long sleeve shirt, but the versatility of a button down. I could roll the sleeves up and unbutton when it got too hot.
• The Arc’Teryx Cerium LT Hoody is a very warm, comfortable jacket. The hood provided a lot of warmth, especially when using it at night with my hoodless quilt.
• The wind shirt was basically never used, but the wind pants were super useful for breaks, getting out of camp in the morning, and glissading on snow.
• Changing from the poncho to the ‘real’ rain jacket was basically useless. I basically never used my rain shell, unless as a pillow.
• A hat and gloves were nice to have in this section, especially when filtering cold, glacial water.
•  My baseball hat/bandana combo was a life saving necessity. Without it I would have fried.

Footwear

• New Balance 610s have about a 450 mile life span. I used this last pair for over 650 miles to Tuolumne Meadows. Trail runners dry quickly after walking in snow or fording rivers.

Cooking System

• Snow Peak Giga Power Stove combined with the Imusa Cook pot was fine. Jetboils are faster at boiling but not as light. There are so many variations on cook systems. Many other hikers did not carry a stove.
• I left my spork in a peanut butter jar in Wrightwood. The long spoon I use now is amazing. I can reach anything!

Hydration System

• The Sawyer Mini filter is terrible. Even after being thoroughly backwashed, the filter time is unbearably slow. At one point we timed it at 17 minutes per liter. I still carried my Mini, but used Legs’ original Sawyer Squeeze water filter. Even splitting it between two people, it was still better than the Mini.
• You will never be far from water. I barely carried any. Three liters of water capacity is MORE than enough.

Survival

• I found uses for my pocket knife daily.
• A lighter should always be in your pack.
• I have since trimmed my first aid kit to a few bandaids and Advil.
• Hygiene Products are nice, but don’t overdo it. Only the essentials like toothbrush, toothpaste, toilet paper, etc. Some people will tell you to pack out your shit covered TP. Good luck with that.
• I HAD to carry a bear can because of certain regulations. I had my permit checked once, and my bear can checked zero times. If not for the fear of a hefty fine, I would have used my food as a pillow as usual. Legs did not carry a bear can. We did not have any problems with her food in the tent. If asked, I would have said I was carrying the bear can for the two of us. If they had a problem with that, they could carry my 230 lb body out of the Sierra.

Electronics

• I used the Halfmile App and PCTHYOH App on a daily basis on my phone.
• Having a charger that can charge multiple items (ipod and phone) at once are great. Many hiker towns and hangouts have limited outlets and hikers are always looking to charge. One plug might be all that is available.
• Having music is a must for me.